UPDATED: Court won’t stop Hyannis fire station vote; meeting is moved to larger room at BHS

Friday

Feb 28, 2014 at 2:00 AMFeb 28, 2014 at 2:22 PM

Superior Court Judge Christopher Muse has denied a motion for a preliminary injunction submitted by 10 Hyannis taxpayers to stop a March 5 vote on the proposed $19.8 million new Hyannis fire HQ.

Susan Vaughn

Judge says Proposition 2 1/2 does not apply to fire districts

Superior Court Judge Christopher Muse has denied a motion for a preliminary injunction submitted by 10 Hyannis taxpayers to stop a March 5 vote on the proposed $19.8 million new Hyannis fire HQ.

Meanwhile, Fire Chief Harold Brunelle said today [Feb. 28] that, in response to the judge's concern that all efforts be made to accommodate a large number of voters, the meeting was being moved from Barnstable High School's Knight Auditorium to the much larger Performing Arts Center in the same building.

"Originally, [the PAC] was booked," Brunnelle said. "Staff at the school rearranged a lot of things to make it available. It's the biggest room in town."

On Feb. 27, Muse heard arguments of the plaintiffs, led by Hyannis resident John Julius, and the defendants, represented by attorneys for the Hyannis Fire District and the town before a nearly full courtroom. At the end of the hearing, he whittled the case to one factor – whether the vote next week would violate the provisions of Proposition 2 ½, which limits annual tax levy increases to 2 1/2 percent.

In his decision released today (Feb. 28), Muse said he limited his decision to the one issue “in view of substantial time constraint.” He concluded that state law Chapter 59, Section 21C “does not include fire districts within its purview, and indeed is replete with references to cities and towns,” and “the court concludes that the statute does not apply to fire districts.”

The Hyannis residents questioned the legality of the special meeting on several levels, including the Proposition 2 1/2 statute. At the beginning of the Feb. 27 hearing, Julius said he was speaking on behalf of all 10 residents, including his wife, Pat Richards, but Muse stopped him immediately. “You can’t represent them,” he said, because Julius is not an attorney. However, Muse allowed Julius to speak on his own behalf.

Julius argued that the Proposition 2 1/2 statute applies to the fire district as well as the town. He claimed that the district is an entity within the town, noting that the taxes for both are on the same bill.

He said the district increased its tax by 10 percent from 2013 to 2014 and that the taxes would increase by 27 percent if the new station is approved.

“The Hyannis Fire District does not have the legal authority to be a taxing authority,” Julius said.

“Fire districts are an anomaly,” Muse said, adding that he doesn’t know of any other such districts in the state. He turned around in his chair to reach for the statute book on the shelf and read it, noting there is no reference to fire districts.

“It tells me that fire district members are not selectmen or a town council,” he said.

Attorney Michael J. Maccaro, of the Quincy law firm of Murphy, Hesse, Toomey and Lehane representing the fire district, argued that the district is a separate entity and thus is exempt from Proposition 2 1/2.

Muse then asked Julius about the voting process – if everyone is eligible to go to Barnstable High School where the vote will be held and if the vote is to be a show of hands.

Julius claimed the vote was an election and would not be legal because the Knight Auditorium holds only 348 people and would not accommodate all the district’s registered voters, of which he said there are 8,900.

Muse disagreed with Julius’ contention that the meeting vote constituted an election. “They are not the same,” he said.

Maccaro also agreed that the special meeting is “a vote of individuals of the district, not an election.”

Muse asked Maccaro whether the district officials would be able to “easily manage the vote” if the auditorium cannot hold the voters who show up.

Maccaro said the voting could be extended into the gymnasium, which holds up to 2,000. If anyone is denied a vote, Maccaro said, the moderator could set another date.

“No one is going to be excluded,” Muse said. “A hand or voice vote doesn’t change things. If anyone is denied, I suggest it ought to be postponed to another venue.”

Muse said he would hold the district accountable for conducting a fair vote. “My bet is a lot will be going to the high school gym. Your job is to make sure they’re welcome,” he told Maccaro.

Maccaro also presented the district’s public interest argument, saying to stop the vote would stop two and a half years of progress with more than 50 public meetings on the fire station plan.

Muse acknowledged that a lot of people are interested in the fire district vote. “Both sides have the right to vote.”

After the hearing, Maccaro said agreed with Muse that the Proposition 2 1/2 statute was the fundamental issue.

Julius’s responded afterward that he was “a little surprised” by the judge’s comments and held to his contention that the statute applies to the fire districts. “I think the law is clear and concise,” he said. “It’s the total taxes assessed in the town. This is the essence. It is an override and should be on the ballot.”